Denny Hamlin
#11 FedEx Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing
Race Info:
Race: Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard
Date/Time: Sunday, Sept. 9/2 pm ET
Distance: 160 Laps/400 Miles
Track Length: 2.5 Mile
Track Shape: Oval
Banking: 9 degrees
2017 Winner: Kasey Kahne
Express Notes:
Darlington Recap: Denny Hamlin finished 10th in Sunday night’s 500-mile event at Darlington Raceway, overcoming ill-handling conditions and a late-race pit road penalty to notch his 13th top-10 of the 2018 season. Hamlin, the defending race winner, captured his third pole of the 2018 season and led the field to green on Sunday, showing the way for the first 11 circuits around the “Lady in Black” before falling outside the top five. In the race’s final Stage, Hamlin battled his way from 12th to sixth when he elected to make his green-flag pit stop with just over 50 laps to go in the event. Unfortunately, the caution flew at the exact same moment, trapping Hamlin a lap down. NASCAR also ruled that Hamlin pitted just after the caution flag came out, and he was served a penalty that sent him to the tail end of the field. Hamlin charged his way back to fifth, but engine troubles forced the #11 FedEx Toyota backwards in the final laps, and he crossed the line in 10th.
Indianapolis Preview: The Series makes it way to Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 25th running of the Brickyard 400 and the 2018 regular season finale. In 12 starts at the 2.5-mile track, Hamlin has notched four top-five finishes, three of those occurring in his last four starts. During his previous visit to the historic speedway, Hamlin finished 17th after suffering significant damage in a late-race accident.
Playoffs Bound: Following his performance at Darlington, Hamlin officially clinched his spot in the 2018 NASCAR Playoffs. He joins Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Erik Jones as he prepares for his 12th season contending for the Cup Championship title.
Special Delivery: Hamlin’s #11 FedEx Toyota will have somewhat of a different look this weekend at Indy. FedEx delivers millions of possibilities every day, and they are celebrating the launch of their new television advertisements with a special hood on Hamlin’s ride for Sunday’s race. The new television advertisements will debut on Sunday, Sept. 9, and will air during the Brickyard 400 on NBCSN. Visit fedex.com/possibilities for more information.
Check Out that View: Hamlin will wear the Helmet Cam for Sunday’s NBCSN broadcast of the Brickyard 400 at Indy that will provide viewers with a first-person view of the race from the driver’s seat. Broadcast overage begins at 2 PM ET.
Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares: This season, FedEx is tying the performance of the #11 FedEx Toyota on the track to its efforts to improve road safety through a new program, Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares, by donating $111 for each lap Hamlin leads and $11,000 for each race victory to Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit working to protect kids on the road, at home and at play. FedEx will also contribute $111,000 to Safe Kids if the #11 team wins the 2018 NASCAR championship. New for the 2018 season, the Denny Hamlin Foundation will also match the total donation to Safe Kids Worldwide.
Hamlin led 11 laps at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, generating a $1,221 donation to Safe Kids on behalf of FedEx. After 25 regular season races, Hamlin has led 270 laps resulting in a $29,970 donation to Safe Kids Worldwide which will ultimately be matched by the Denny Hamlin Foundation. Fans can track the total amount donated to date from the Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares program on the homepage of.
Press Kit: Download the 2018 FedEx Racing press materials at www.fedexracing.com/presskit, including bios for Denny Hamlin, Mike Wheeler and Joe Gibbs Racing leadership, program highlights and statistics.
Hamlin Statistics:
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Races: 12
Wins: 0
Poles: 1 (2012)
Top-5: 4
Top-10: 6
Laps Led: 75
Avg. Start: 12.6
Avg. Finish: 13.7
Hamlin Conversation
Even though you’ve secured your Playoff spot, how meaningful would it to be win the season finale at Indianapolis?
“Our team has worked hard all season to position ourselves for a win, so closing out the regular season with a victory would be a great feeling, especially at a historic place like Indy. It obviously wouldn’t hurt going into the Playoffs either.”
